The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma
Chigozie Obioma’s debut novel, The Fishermen, is an outstanding addition to African literature. Fans of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – Half of a Yellow Sun – will relish it’s distinct Nigerian placement. The sibling bond is tight between the four brothers in this story. It is a bond fortified through triumph and adversity. The narrator is Benjamin, the youngest of the brothers. Through his accounts we learn of the brothers’ fortuitous meeting with a Nigerian presidential aspirant and of the boys’ daring escape from a violent political coup that threatens their hometown. Political instability, economic hardship and corruption are rife, but life is modestly privileged for these brothers.
Their father holds lofty dreams for them. Bestowing gratuitous praise upon them, he believes his sons will distinguish themselves with professional careers and will continue their upward mobility by migrating to Canada. As the family’s patriarch, he is a strict disciplinarian. His sons live in fear and awe of him but when he is transferred to a different city for work the boys’ new-found freedom has them considering their own dreams.
With their father’s absence, parental control is lost. Their mother, subservient in a traditional household, feels powerless to influence her sons. The tendency of both parents to speak in parables confusing their sons is yet another concern. Misinterpretation, albeit comical, creates a disconnect and a gulf opens up into which dangerous missteps are taken.
When a local madman makes an ill-omened prophecy, the alliance of brotherhood is broken and fear and mistrust set brother-against-brother. As tragedy strikes, the family recoils in shock and fails to recognise a plot brewing that will bring even greater heartache for all.
